Cigarette making machine



Feb. 19, 1963 M. PATTERSON 3,077,889-

4 CIGARETTE MAKING MACHINE Filed Sept 22, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR- MORE-IEAD PATTERSON zww ATTORNEY Feb. '19, 1963 M. PATTERSON CIGARETTE MAKING MACHINE Filed Sept. 22, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR IggREHEAD PATTERSON ATTORNEY United States PatentOfilice Patented Feb. 19, 1963 3,077,889 CIGARETTE MAKIN G MACHINE Morehead Patterson, New York, N.Y., assignor to American Machine & Foundry Company, a corporation of New Jersey Filed Sept. 22, 1960, Ser. No. 57,713 14 Claims. (Cl. 13194) This invention relates to cigarette making machines and more particularly to a method and apparatus for making mouthpiece or filter tipped cigarettes.

Mouthpiece cigarettes are commonly made by joining a mouthpiece to a length of wrapped cigarette tobacco by means of a uniting band. While the term mouthpiece as used herein refers primarily to filter tip cigarettes, it is also intended to include hollow mouthpiece cigarettes, dense end cigarettes and any combination of such tipped cigarette ends. There is sometimes a tendency for the uniting band to unravel or open if it is not securely overlapped and joined. To avoid this and also to assist in rounding the assembly it is often the practice to roll the assembly with the uniting band thereabout between a stationary surface such as a concave and a traveling surface. One disadvantage of obtaining a satisfactory joint in this manner is that adhesive sometimes gets on the surface of the concave and begins to build up. While it is a simple matter to employ a brush or a scraper on the rolling drum, it is obviously not feasible to so clean the concave unless the machine is stopped because the stationary surface is continuously in use when the machine is in operation.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a cleaning device for a stationary rolling surface such as a concave used in making mouthpiece cigarettes.

Another object of my invention is to provide a method and device for moving a concave so that it can be cleaned without interrupting the operation of a mouthpiece cigarette making machine.

A further object is to provide means for reciprocating a concave slowly during the operation of the mouthpiece cigarette making machine so as to expose the rolling surface of a part of the concave thereby facilitating its cleaning.

Another object of this invention is to provide a method for cleaning mouthpiece rolling concaves without interrupting the operation of a mouthpiece cigarette making machine.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear as the description of the particular embodiment selected to illustrate the invention progresses. In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, like characters of reference have been applied to corresponding parts throughout the several views which make up the drawings.

The drawings show a concave embodying the features of my invention.

To illustrate the invention, whereby the foregoing objects may be attained, I have shown how a rolling drum may be used in combination with a rolling surface between which mouthpiece cigarette assemblies are rolled.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, partly broken away and partly in section, of the machine of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a plan view, to a reduced scale, partly in section.

Referring to the drawings, cigarettes C are delivered by a suitable device such as the roller belt conveyor 19 to the receiving area 12 located at the entrance between the roller 14 and concave 16. Instead of a conveyor belt,

a pusher or a drum or other suitable feeder could also be used for this purpose.

To facilitate the removal of cigarette mouthpiece assemblages from the conveyor 10, suitable fingers 18 are positioned in front of the entrance area of the concave 16. These fingers extend in the path of travel of the cigarettes C and into suitable grooves or slots 20 formed in the conveyor 10. In this way cigarettes are caused to be removed and directed away from the conveyor 10 in between the rolling drum 14 and the concave 16.

The rolling drum 14 rotating in the direction indicated by the arrow carries on its center surface severed sections of uniting band material 22 which are delivered thereto at spaced intervals by suitable means, and are held on the surface of the roller 14 by means of suction acting through the perforations 24 of the rolling drum 14.

When a severed section of uniting band material 22 comes into contact with the mouthpiece and cigarette length assemblage which is to be joined together, the outside surface of the uniting band material, which has had adhesive applied thereto, sticks to the assemblage and is rolled about the same, in between the drum 14 and the concave 16. Rolling action is imparted to the assemblage by the rotation of drum 14 in a manner well known in the art such as shown in U.S. patent application 509,293, granted to George Dearsley, filed May 18, 1955, and U.S. Patent 2,188,998 granted to W. F. M. Edwards on February 6, 1940.

When the assemblage reaches the opposite side of the concave, it is discharged onto a suitable receiving mechanism such as the paddle wheels 26. A suitable inflector or stripper 25, extending across the path of travel of the cigarette assembly directs the same to the paddle wheels 26. The paddle wheels 26 rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow and may be operated by any suitable mechanism, in time with the main drive of the mouthpiece making machine.

Any adhesive or other foreign matter that gets in contact with the rolling surfaces of drum 14 and concave 16 would tend to build up on the same. This, of course, would be objectionable because it would ultimately mar subsequent cigarette assemblages undergoing rolling and might even choke the machine.

It will be apparent that any adhesive or foreign matter accumulating on the drum 14- can easily be removed by a scraper or brush, while the machine is running. With respect to the concave however, it has not been possible to clean the concave without stopping the machine.

My present invention provides a method and means for cleaning this concave while the machine is running without interrupting production. This has been achieved by making the uniting band applying concave longer than the rolling surface of the roller 14. In order to expose the concave surface of the concave for cleaning, I have provided a mounting for the concave which will allow it to be moved axially at an extremely slow rate of speed, as for example, .003 inch per cigarette rolled. This axial movement of the concave will have no deleterious effect on the assemblage because the amount of movement is minute.

In the apparatus used, for the purpose of illustrating the invention, it have shown the concave made with the slots extending along the entine length of the concave. Suitable corresponding beveled rollers, supported on suitable pinions 28 and 3t) and arranged along the length of the V-shaped slot, support the concave in its desired position while permitting the concave to be reciprocated axially. The pinion shafts 28 and 30 are mounted in bed 32. Beveled rollers (not shown) coact with the V-slots of the concave roller plate 16. It will be appreciated, however, that any other suitable mechanism could be 3 employed for axially supporting the reciprocating concave.

As the concave moves axially, brushes 34 and 36 carried by the roller 14 brush the concave surface of the concave thereby removing adhesive from the concave, first on one end and then on the opposite end. Because of the extremely slow rate of movement of the concave, its exposed surface will be repeatedly brushed, due to the rotation of the drum 14.

It will be appreciated that while I have shown brushes 34 and 36 it is also possible to employ a cleaning pad or a scraper or other suitable cleaning element for this purpose. Similarly, instead of mounting the brushes on the end of the roller 14, a separate cleaner could be mounted adjacent the ends of the roller 14, for this purpose.

Any suitable mechanism can be employed for reciprocating the concave. In the embodiment I have employed to illustrate the invention, I have mounted a worm wheel 38 which meshes with the gear 40. The gear 40 is fixedly mounted on the shaft 42 and at the opposite end of the shaft 42 is mounted another gear 44 which in turn meshes with the gear 46. The gear 46 is fixedly connected to the sprocket 48. A sprocket chain 50 is trained over sprocket 48 and is driven by the sprocket 48 to cause the sprocket chain 50 to travel in an endless path. This movement of the sprocket chain 56 causes pins 52 extending upwardly inside of the slot 54 to pull the block 56 along with the chain 50, thereby imparting a reciprocating movement to the concave 16.

The block 56 is fixedly attached to the concave 16 so that when the block 56 is pulled along with the chain 50, concave 16 will be reciprocated axially, thereby exposing the concave surface 16 to the cleaning action of suitable scrapers or brushes, such as 34 and 36.

While I have shown mechanism for reciprocating the concave, it will be appreciated that the concave could also be reciprocated manually if that should be desired to expose the rolling surface of the concave to facilitate its being cleaned without stopping the operation of the machine. It will be further appreciated that the reciprocating mechanism I have shown is also only for purposes of illustration and that any suitable device for effecting a reciprocation of the concave would be employed.

The invention hereinabove described may therefore be varied in construction within the scope of the claims, for the particular device selected to illustrate the invention is but one of many possible embodiments of the same. The invention therefore, is not to be restricted to the precise details of the structure shown and described.

What is claimed is:

l. A machine for applying a uniting band about mouthpiece assemblages comprising, a rolling drum, a rolling surface spaced from said rolling drum, means for delivering assemblages to which uniting bands are to be applied in between said surface and said rolling drum, and mechanism for slowly reciprocating said surface so as to expose a part thereof at a time to facilitate its being cleaned.

2. An apparatus for applying uniting bands about mouthpiece assemblages comprising a rolling drum, a concave spaced from said rolling drum, means for delivering mouthpiece cigarettes in between said surfaces, a support for said concave which permits the concave to be reciprocated axially, to permit it to be cleaned While the machine is running.

3. In a cigarette making machine, mechanism for applying uniting bands to mouthpiece assemblages comprising a rolling drum, a concave spaced from the rolling drum for rolling mouthpiece assemblages therebetween to apply a uniting band thereabout, said concave having width which is wider than the rolling drum, a movable mounting for the concave to facilitate the concave being moved axially to clean the same.

4. A mouthpiece cigarette making machine of the type employing a rolling concave, means for rolling uniting 4, bands about assemblages against said concave, said means being of a narrower width than the concave, a movable support for said concave to permit the concave to be reciprocated axially at an extremely slow rate of travel so as to expose the concave surfaces to facilitate cleaning said surfaces during actual operation of the machine.

5. A cigarette mouthpiece assembling machine comprising a rolling drum, a concave having a periphery opposed to and substantially concentric with, the cylindrical surface of said drum, said periphery spaced from said drum and of wider width than said drum, means for moving said concave substantially parallel to the radial axis of said drum and mechanisms, disposed closely adjacent the ends of said drum, for cleaning the concave surfaces extending beyond the width of said drum without stopping the operation of said mouthpiece cigarette assembling machine.

6. In a cigarette making machine for applying uniting bands to cigarette assemblages, a drum, a rolling surface against which said drum rolls cigarette assemblies to apply uniting bands about the assembly, means for reciprocating said rolling surface in a direction parallel to the axis of the assemblages being rolled at a very slow rate to first expose a portion of the rolling surface on one side of said drum and then the other side of said drum to facilitate its being cleaned while allowing the remainder of said rolling surface to be simultaneously employed for applying uniting bands about the mouthpiece assemblages.

7. In a cigarette making machine for applying uniting bands to cigarette assemblages, a drum, cleaning elements secured to the opposite ends of said drum near the periphery thereof, a rolling surface against which said drum rolls cigarette assemblies to apply uniting bands about the asssemblies, means for reciprocating said rolling surface in a direction parallel to the axis of the assemblages being rolled at a very slow rate to first expose a portion of the rolling surfaces on one side of said drum and then the other side of said drum to facilitate its being cleaned alternately by the cleaning elements mounted on said drum.

8. The method of applying uniting bands to mouthpiece assemblages which comprises, rolling a cigarette against a surface to apply a uniting band about the assemblage, moving the surface at a very slow rate of speed in a direction transverse to the movement of the assemblage while it is in operation to apply uniting bands about said assemblages.

9. Apparatus for applying uniting bands about cigarette assemblages comprising a rolling drum carrying uniting bands on its surface, a rolling plate of wider width than said rolling drum, a mechanism spaced from said rolling plate for rolling a cigarette assembly along said rolling plate, mechanism for slowly moving said rolling plate in a direction transverse to the direction in which mouthpiece assemblages roll over said rolling plate, and a cleaning element for cleaning the exposed portion of the rolling surface of the rolling plate as it becomes exposed.

10. In an apparatus for applying cigarette uniting bands about a cigarette assembly, having a rolling drum and a surface for rolling said assembly therebetween, the improvement consisting in means for displacing said surface axially relative to said drum to permit cleaning of said surface while said rolling continues.

11. In combination in a mouthpiece cigarette machine, delivery means for delivering mouthpiece cigarette assemblies, a drum having suction means on the outer surface thereof adapted to hold thereon severed sections of uniting band material, said drum being positioned to receive cigarette assemblies from said delivery means, a concave adjacent said drum for rolling said assemblies therebteween and means connected to said concave for displacing said concave axially relative to said drum, to permit cleaning of said concave, while said rolling is in progress.

12. In combination in a mouthpiece cigarette machine, delivery means for conveying mouthpiece cigarette assemblies, a drum having suction means on the outer surface thereof adapted to hold thereon severed sections of uniting band material to be wrapped around assemblies received from said delivery means, cleaning means on the outer periphery of said drum, a concave adjacent said drum for rolling said assemblies therebetween, finger means on said concave extending in the path of travel of said assemblies to remove the same from said delivery means, and reciprocating means for slowly moving said concave axially with respect to said assemblies in order to expose part of said concave to the cleaning action of said cleaning means.

13. The method of applying uniting band material about mouthpiece cigarette assemblies comprising rolling a cigarette against a surface to wrap a band about each of said assemblies, reciprocally moving said surface at a very slow rate of speed in a direction transverse to the movement of said assemblies and simultaneously cleaniug said surface.

14. An apparatus for applying cigarette uniting bands about a cigarette assembly, said apparatus having a roll- 5 ing drum and a surface for rolling said assembly there- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,821,199 Korber Jan. 28, 1958 2,821,200 Korber Jan. 28, 1958 2,855,938 Stelzer Oct. 14, 1958 2,874,701 Stelzer Feb. 24, 1959 

1. A MACHINE FOR APPLYING A UNITING BAND ABOUT MOUTHPIECE ASSEMBLAGES COMPRISING, A ROLLING DRUM, A ROLLING SURFACE SPACED FROM SAID ROLLING DRUM, MEANS FOR DELIVERING ASSEMBLAGES TO WHICH UNITING BANDS ARE TO BE APPLIED IN BETWEEN SAID SURFACE AND SAID ROLLING DRUM, AND MECHANISM FOR SLOWLY RECIPROCATING SAID SURFACE SO AS TO EXPOSE A PART THEREOF AT A TIME TO FACILITATE ITS BEING CLEANED. 